“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’ Then you will defile your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, ‘Away with you!’” ~Isaiah 30:21-22.
I’ve always been under the impression that God is our leader and a leader leads by going before us – in front of us – leading the way. Indeed, God has always been, and therefore has gone before us. Jesus paved the way, marking out the way to go through this life. But, we are not then just left to find those trail markers by ourselves if we don’t want to, or can’t decipher them on our own. The third person of the Trinity is sent to us now to walk with us – walk just behind us – giving us direction, suggestions, and advice, if we ask for it.
I’ve been praying recently that the Holy Spirit do what He says he will do in the Bible, to come up behind me and tell me where to turn, to the right or to the left as I walk out my life, and he has. We don’t want God to control our every move like we have no choice – as a grandmaster maneuvers pawns on a chessboard. No, God honors us and our free will. He comes along side us, or behind us, and in a very quiet, gentle voice, suggests a path – a course of action that we might take. The suggestion is so innocuous that it hardly takes any effort on our soul’s part to just step over the comment or push it aside. In order to allow God to lead us in our lives, we must learn to restrain ourselves from steamrolling over all those suggestions to us by the Holy Spirit. In this way, God allows us to still make our own decisions, however we have the added bonus of having that lifeline in our ear that could make our choices clearer – easier to see, understand, and to make.
I’ve been listening to these suggestions for the last couple of days and I can tell you this: if the track record holds true, I’ll never get into trouble from taking any of those suggestions. When I guess my way through life, I make more mistakes. Nothing bad has ever come from following one of the Spirit’s suggestions yet.
I hear the voice in the same place in my head every time: toward the back of my neck, just below my left ear. Like the Spirit is whispering in my ear which way I should go – another way that might be better for me. The Holy Spirit makes these suggestions much in the same way my wife will give me advice when I ask for it. And I’ve learned to start listening to my wife when she suggests something. What’s more, I’ve often seen how following her thought would have been better for me – better than my idea – and in the process, encourages her because I’m making her feel listened to rather than shutting her down – discouraging her from ever suggesting another idea ever again. I would be a fool to turn away all this great, and free, advice. It’s helping me! The Holy Spirit is also helping me and answering my prayer, my request, and honoring the promise he made in Scripture.
This is another example of cause and effect. If we first can hear that little voice, then we need to start acting on the advice. After it proves to us that it is sound and works, we will begin to trust it. And, when that happens, we will finally start seeing the wisdom of God, and the futility and foolishness of our own ways will become obvious to us. Then, we will, quite willingly and naturally, discard all of our old, stupid ways, wants, and desires.
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